A House Judiciary subcommittee recently approved a bill that would extend representatives' terms from two years to four, and length senators' from four to six years.

The bill would require a change to the state Constitution, which means voters would have to give their approval. That, in itself, would ensure a lively -- and, we hope, enlightening -- debate on the role and effectiveness of South Carolina lawmakers.

Mostly, we think terms are too short, particularly in the House. Representatives currently spend half their term preparing to run again. A frequent excuse of politicians for not accomplishing a goal is that things just don't get done in an "election year." Given that every other year is an election year, it's easy to understand why progress is not a word that one associates with our Statehouse.

Fewer elections likely would mean that powerful interest groups, which have bottomless pockets at election time, might see their influence wane as they had fewer campaigns to contribute to. And because incumbents seldom are turned out, holding elections less often by itself isn't likely to change the cast of characters in the General Assembly.

Here's the best argument for lengthening legislators' terms: Voters won't have to listen to taped phone solicitations quite as often or see their mailboxes crammed with campaign propaganda all the time.